The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) and the Nigeria Guild of Editors (NGE) have urged President Bola Tinubu to review the Cybercrime Act and other restrictive laws. They said these laws are being used to suppress press freedom and silence peaceful dissent.
At a joint press conference held on Saturday in Ikeja, Lagos, NGE General Secretary Iyobosa Uwugiaren and SERAP Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare made the appeal.
Call for Legal Reform and Human Rights Compliance
The event, themed “Unchecked Injustice: How Authorities Are Weaponising the Cybercrime Act to Stifle Peaceful Dissent and Media Freedom in Nigeria,” focused on the misuse of laws to target the press.
SERAP and NGE asked the government to align the Cybercrime Act with constitutional and international human rights standards. They called on security agencies and state authorities to respect the rights of journalists and citizens.
Uwugiaren urged the Attorney-General to push for immediate amendments to the law. He also asked him to advise the president to implement court rulings, including the ECOWAS Court judgment on the Cybercrime Act.
Uwugiaren appealed to state governors to direct security agencies to drop all charges against journalists and bloggers. He also urged them to stop the arbitrary shutdown of media houses.
Oluwadare condemned the imprisonment of peaceful protesters under the Act. He said such actions send a dangerous message and threaten democracy.
He cited the 2023 and 2024 Freedom House reports, which show a sharp decline in internet freedom. According to him, many bloggers remain in detention following their arrests under the amended Cybercrime Act.
Rising Attacks on Journalists Raise Alarms
Oluwadare shared data from the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), which recorded 110 verified attacks on the press in 2024. This figure has already surpassed the total for 2023.
Former Guardian Editor-in-Chief Martins Oloja also addressed the audience. He mentioned that Media Rights Agenda reported 45 journalists attacked so far in 2024.
Oloja reminded the public that journalists play a vital role in monitoring governance. He emphasized that the Nigerian Constitution empowers the media to hold the government accountable.
